1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus, and, more particularly, to self aligning printhead carrier bearings for an imaging apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
An imaging apparatus, in the form of an ink jet printer, forms an image on a print medium by ejecting ink from a plurality of ink jetting nozzles of an ink jet printhead to form a pattern of ink dots on the print medium. Such an ink jet printer typically includes a reciprocating printhead carrier that transports one or more ink jet printheads across the print medium along a bi-directional scanning path defining a print zone of the printer. Typically, the mid-frame provides media support at or near the print zone. A sheet feeding mechanism is used to incrementally advance the print media sheet in a sheet feed direction, also commonly referred to as a sub-scan direction, through the print zone between scans in the main scan direction, or after all data intended to be printed with the print medium at a particular stationary position has been completed.
The reciprocating printhead carrier is supported, for example, by at least one guide rod. The printhead carrier may include a pair of axially spaced bearings having respective apertures for receiving the guide. One parameter that limits print quality in bi-directional printing is the carrier bearing clearance, i.e., the amount of clearance between the carrier bearings and the associated guide rod. Bearing clearance is necessary from a manufacturing tolerance perspective, and typically the tighter the tolerances the more expensive the printer. The effect of the bearing clearance is a shift in the registration position of the ink jet printhead with respect to a print area on the print media sheet.
What is needed in the art is an apparatus providing tighter bearing-to-rod clearances.